Fall Roasted Cauliflower with Peppercorn Goat Cheese

As we edge (slowly but surely!) towards Fall, my mind turns to sweaters..roasted chickens..roasted everything! This simple side recipe is perfect for A/C free nights, incorporating the goat’s milk Detroit Street Brick cheese from Zingerman’s Creamery in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This luscious cheese is created with organic milk sourced from Southeastern Michigan, and studded with crushed and whole green peppercorns. The rind is light and pillowy and thin enough to add a white pepper note to the whole experience without overwhelming your palate. The paste has an appropriately ‘Zing-y’ (cheese pun!) citrus and lemon finish and a densely creamy paste.

Fall Roasted Cauliflower with Peppercorn Goat Cheese

Ingredients:

1Head Cauliflower, broken down into florets

6 to 8oz Detroit Street Brick, crumbled

3/4c Purslane greens, chopped (optional)

Olive oil, salt and pepper

9×9 baking pan

Aluminum foil

Detroit Street Brick

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Toss cauliflower, salt and pepper in olive oil, to lightly coat, and place in a single layer in your baking pan.

3. Place on your bottom oven rack, and roast uncovered until the tops begin to brown (15-20 minutes).

When the cauliflower just starts to brown pull it out of the oven and sprinkle with the Detroit Street Brick.

5. Place pan back in the oven & cover loosely with a sheet of aluminum foil.

6. Continue roasting until the cheese browns and melts (5-7 minutes).

7. Pull out and garnish with chopped purslane, parsley, cilantro or green of your choice.

In terms of pairing, I had this with a Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley. The medium body handled the pepper spice like a dream, and I found the notes of pears and honeysuckle balanced the acid in a very pleasant way. The caramelization on the cauliflower enhanced the more savory apple notes in the wine, overall I’d say it worked out pretty well. This particular producer uses sustainable farming on a third generation estate, and can be found at Pastoral.